How Can We Have Free Will If God Knows the Future?

The Jimmy Akin Podcast | Episode 002 | September 23, 2024

Here Jimmy Akin explores how God’s foreknowledge works. Many people believe that if God knows our future actions, then we lack free will, but this is a misconception. Classical theism asserts that God is omniscient and knows everything, including the future. However, the Bible's references to foreknowledge are limited and can also mean intellectually knowing something in advance or making choices ahead of time. Some theologians suggest that foreknowledge may refer to God's love for those he foreknows. The concept of foreknowledge is closely linked to the idea of God being outside of time and knowing all moments in history simultaneously. While humans interpret God's foreknowledge as knowing the future in advance, from God's perspective, all times are equally real, leading some theologians to assert that it's merely knowledge to God and not foreknowledge. This understanding of foreknowledge has significant implications for the discussion of free will, as God's knowledge of our future actions does not negate our ability to freely make choices. Overall, the concept of God's foreknowledge does not undermine the existence of free will.

CHAPTERS
00:00 – Coming Up
00:14 – Intro
01:36 – Foreknowledge in the Bible.
03:16 – Foreknowledge = Love?
04:31 – Foreknowledge as Knowledge and Choice
06:49 – Time and Eternity
08:40 – Anthropomorphic Language
11:17 – God and Foreknowledge
13:44 – God’s Foreknowledge = His Knowledge
15:14 – Foreknowledge and Free Will
17:21 – Closing/Outro